Delusion of Hope
by Ready-Liver
Summary: It was a Delusion of Hope for the hedgehog from the beginning. UPDATE - Ch. 7 - heavy language this chapter
1. 1

He stared toward the leaf buried ground… thinking, almost blankly… His thoughts were so conjured that they almost didn't exist. Somehow he couldn't ignore them though, move onto the future. Everything great, he thought, seemed like a dream because they always dissipated with such quickness it was as if they were never there. Sometimes he wished he could simply look back and rewind his life, to relive moments just one more time, perhaps if only to fix them.

_You are a fool, for ever thinking to leave your home… _The words seemed to echo through his mind. They didn't seem to make sense at the time, but slowly he pieced together their significance. With everything that had happened to him… he'd gained so much more experience and understanding of his surroundings, and the people in them. It was a scar of sorrow and disgrace. He simply ignored his superiors and without word left his village.

His head remained moped in the same position. With an indecisive nature, he remained confused. Did it make sense to look back on the past, or was there something else he could do? Of course… There was always another solution, but he never chose to take them. Choice was the key there. He always had one but neglected it like it didn't exist.

Reflecting on the past revealed this to him… He realized the choices he could have made and now what he could do:

He could return to his home…

_He's coming back…_

He could admit his ignorance and fault…

_He'll see he was right and be disappointed…_

He could return to the life that was once his years ago…

_He'll see nothing but the truth to redeem him of the lies he told himself…_

It'll be like a new start for him…

_Finally… he'll make it his goal again… to find me…_

A tear dropped from one eye… it symbolized the end of the search as soon as it met hands with the ground. A shake between symbols, resting him at peace to return back, and finally accept the truth of the events 5 years ago…

"It's time…" He smiled as he said the name, "To return home…"

Sae, that was his name, jumped from the rock that he kneeled on, with his head raised landing onto the dirt-paved path. "I'm returning today." He said aloud with such confidence. He began to walk, knowing this area well. His travels had brought him only miles away from his home once again. It was like he'd traveled a circle to become stronger in mind.

After a long travel to his home city, Sae finally concluded himself as back. He had no need to see the actual village before doing so, just seeing the old landscape seemed to be enough. In 5 years, nothing had really changed around the area. The hedgehog continued to walk forward, his eyes looking straight ahead. As he walked further up the hill a gust of wind brought to him a foul odor… As it came to him, he took a whiff of the air. It puzzled him, but part of it was smoke and this troubled him. Sae started to sprint forward like tomorrow was only on the other side. Then he saw the village… it was a ruin. All the buildings were ashes… from the remains of one house he could see a child hanging from a window, face burnt along with body from the fire they had died from. A young girl… holding onto her bear, being hugged by her mother… all dead… Tears spilt from his eyes. He couldn't hold the emotions back. They just rained out like an endless flood of water, the source a never ending fountain.

Sae walked inside the old village as he cried. Looking for clues of what might have happened, then crossing whom he'd been searching for the entire time… The figure was faced at an angle where the body was semi-visible.

"Father?" Sae's voice was of disbelief, "You're… here. But…"

"You're still young Sae."

"Damn it! What's going on here?"

"This village was so primitive. I knew you would return."

"What are you talking about? What's wrong with you? You're not making sense."

"You're so ignorant."

"Did you do this?"

His father would not answer. No reply was made, but just by staring at the single eye he had sight of… He saw no remorse.

"You bastard…"

His father turned, his other side now revealed. Where his stripes were once white, they had become black, and the white of the eye as well… The pupil a pure symbol of power, yellow around the massively dilated pupil.

"By Chaos… What happened to you?"

"I've become one with the darkness in Chaos."

"It's sick… To think I believed in you…"

"Silence!" The hedgehog obeyed at the overwhelming tone, "There's nothing that need be made clear to you."

"How could you have done this?"

His father didn't answer, "But you can't follow me. Not yet at least. Your death wouldn't be satisfying without preparation."

Sae's mind started thinking wildly. Thoughts of anger seemed to control how he comprehended the situation. He wasn't calm, wasn't thinking straight. For the moment, he was a fool.

"You won't tell me what to do. I'll kill you and avenge those who died here by your hand!"

"Then like a real man, you will forge your own destiny." No emotion left his father's voice as he turned his feet and drew his sword to point on Sae's position, who was now running forward in aggression.

The hedgehog took one foul punch, was parried, and then his father made his move. With a slash from his sword, he cleanly cut off Sae's arm causing a fountain of blood to spray from the hedgehogs open wound. He screamed and screamed in pain, cursing his father and abusing the word bastard.

There was no care for his son's agony; he had offered him a chance to live freely. Sae's father walked away, not taking another look back at his offspring. Then… there was silence.


	2. 2

_"It looks like he's induced a coma."_

**PART I: KLITCH**

At age 17 stood a slate-blue hedgehog, covered in white stripes on his body and face. He rested looking out across an almost endless stretch of forest for another city to take residence in before the next sun-fall. He'd spent three years looking for his father, one of his village's most famed generals who'd fallen under the status of M.I.A 12 years previous. He was young, but the teenager remembered his father with some accuracy and would not let his name be disgraced without proof. He would not let them say he was dead.

He was only with a small pouch of rations, made up of what little money he could scavenge and fruits for on the go eating. It was almost impossible to carry anything that wouldn't spoil so he'd have to eat when he found food generally.

"Well, here we are again Sae." He said to himself with a content smile, "No information on what I'm looking for and low on money. I hope the next town isn't too far away, I'm starving and I don't think I can keep looking on an empty stomach."

From his location, Sae still couldn't conceive anything as being civic so he began walking. The hill he was on began to slope down gently into the coverage of greenery and other vegetation. Shade was like a savior to him as the sun had plagued his skin for so long it began to peel in spots. He was thankful for the innovation of his surroundings now.

"This path," The hedgehog thought, "It seems like it was forged…" He took a moment to look up, let his stomach growl, and the completely analyze the significance… At last he yelled allowed, "There's something up ahead! With people!" Sae began to run forward, so excited for the moment he forgot about what he was doing.

After about 10 minutes of running and a short walk, he'd come to the gate entrance of what would appear to be a village. He breathed heavily, tired from his run, short hunger, and a long journey over. Looking up, it was only to his disappointment that no one was watching over to open the gates, the sun would be going down soon too which would make it harder for them to spot him. He couldn't just spark their attention with some noise either. Sae figured that if he did that they'd take him for a crazy, or an outsider of the forest district, either assumption was bad.

"No gate keepers? This is insane."

"Sorry is there someone down there?" Asked a voice from above.

Sae's attention was grabbed almost immediately as his face turned up to see an old fox looking down, "Yes! I've been waiting here for quite awhile so if you could open the gate it'd be much appreciated if you understand."

"Alright. Sorry for the late reaction son. My hearing and vision ain't so good these days y'know." He squinted even further while holding his head out, "Eh, where you from." He paused his question as if trying to think of what to say. "Pardon me but I can't exactly tell from looking at you."

"That's ok. I come from," Sae stopped as well in the middle of his sentence. He was, for a second indecisive in whether he should tell the truth, but made the to do so, "Cidjad."

"You don't say? We'll send an informer to let them know you've arrived."

"That's ok. It really isn't necessary." Sae smiled fake at him for the moment, trying to stop him from doing so.

"Well, at least to let them know you're here ok. It's standard procedure."

"Well… If you insist." Sae began to think to himself as he looked away for a moment, "I can't remain here for too long. It'll be dangerous for my own sake."

"'Ey! The gates are open, you coming or not?"

"Yes, I'll be in!" He moved forward into the village with that.

There were many lights and buildings within. It was much like his home of Cidjad, with the exception it was slightly more advanced. Cidjad science labs held most of its technology along with the government. He'd seen most of it because of where he had spent a large duration of his life in the city. But now this just seemed astonishing to him, this much technology in one area, this much light in the night, not even with a fully moon in the air. Times had truly changed. Immediately, he began heading for what looked like a pub.

There was no real door on the building. Its entrance was covered by a thick leather coating that had been trimmed so people could walk through without too much trouble. The air was warmer in here also due to the fire that was lit off in the fireplace. Lanterns were hung from the ceiling, spaced evenly to distribute light properly and give a friendly focus. Sae could tell that even with the options of electricity this was choice to give a more old fashion style, something hard to come across. Pubs were a choice place for travelers too, there was no need to spend extra money for people who lived in the village and probably wouldn't use the area as much.

The hedgehog walked up to the tender who was a bear, immediately gaining his attention. Nothing was questionable of his appearance though, Sae appeared to be a normal traveler with the rags he wore, it was rather the tender was more of an attentive person.

"I'd like to order some food and a bed for tonight." That was all he said, all that need be said.

"Alright, you'll pay in the morning. I'll give you the price then."

"Alright." Sae agreed, hating the idea knowing he'd probably overeat what he could afford. He continued to stand.

"What're you lookin' at? Get a table and we'll have waiter come to you."

"Right." He walked a few meters back to sit himself down.

Only minutes after taking a seat he felt a hand on his shoulder. It held a loose grip and relaxed carefully in place so it didn't alarm the hedgehog too much as to turn around and flip whoever was there. Sae turned his head to see who could possibly want his attention. His eyes came in contact with another fox. His fur was messed up, flipped everywhere, and almost yellow, but mixed with some streaks of brown. He wore a ripped black leather jacket and loose jeans, kept up by a leather belt.

"Can I help you?" Sae asked.

"Actually." Said the fox, "You can, I think."

"I'm sorry, I don't offer assistance to people I don't know."

"Well my name is Klitch. You know me now, so we can exchange a few words."

"Ok. I'll hear you out."

"See, that's all I ask for. Let me start with a question."

"Alright, ask."

"Is there anything you want?"

"Why does that matter?"

"I just want to be more fair. Because what I want, I don't think money is enough to pay for. I want to try and help you out."

"No, there's nothing."

"Are you sure? I'm just sorry, I'm a bit of an eavesdropper."

"Yeah. So what does that matter?"

"I might have just happened to have overheard you conversation with the gate keeper."

"So what? I'm from Cidjad."

"Exactly. I may come from a primitive background, but I'm no imbecile. Sounded to me that you were trying awfully hard to convince him of not sending an informer to Cidjad." Klitch itched his nose a bit; Sae took it as a sign that the annoyance of a fox thought he was on a role. Klitch leaned into Sae's face, "So what'd you do? Get in a little trouble with the authorities. Have a debt to pay off."

"Shut up." His past contained some involvement of pain, "You don't know me and you have nothing to offer."

"What is it you want?"

"Nothing you can get me."

"Test me."

"Let's just say… There was a person I wanted to find."

"It might be hard, but it's possible."

"Never mind then. I don't care unless it's guaranteed…"

"Fine, but the offer is open. It should be simple, for a traveler of your caliber." Klitch lifted his head away, smiled and walked away.

Sae's waiter had arrived then, "Sir, what would you like to order tonight? Anything to drink?"

"Just bring me some water and whatever you'd recommend to eat." He smiled at the waiter before looking back at Klitch who caught staring his way. Klitch waved then left the pub.

"Alright. By the way, don't mind that guy. He bugs all the travelers who come to the city."

That night, Sae ate until his stomach felt bloated. He always did when he went to different places in villages and such. Each time it'd run his bill so high he couldn't afford to pay, and sometimes he wouldn't get a bed. This time he was fortunate to get the much needed rest, as he got up after he finished to go and sleep.

When he woke the next morning his body was at peace but his mind was on the thought of paying the bill. He'd probably be down there, see the bill, and then give a good punch to the bartender's face before making a run out of the village. He'd have trouble getting past the gates, but that'd be about it. If he could get the gates open then it'd almost be free sailing, as long as they didn't have some extremist guards like Cidjad's own Hyperior Clan.

Sae started walking down the steps, then as he came to the first floor he turned to his right to be met by the tender, who at that moment was cleaning a glass in a cliché manner. He looked at him, avoiding any signs of guilt as an expression on his face then spoke, "Good morning."

"Eh. Here's you bill."

Sae looked at it. It would be needless to say the price; just that it was off of what he had was enough. Sae laughed as a nervous reaction. He then sighed and looked the bear in his eyes, "If you have a heart, you will let me off of this payment." He said.

"If I had a heart." Replied the bear, "But you ate half of the food in this pub, so I don't."

"That might be a bit of an exaggeration." Sae continued his nervous laugh, "Please! I can't pay it!"

"No one could pay for that much food. You might as well have put this place out of business!"

"No."

"Yes!"

"Quit screaming in my face!"

"Then pay the bill or I'll have the guards in here to solve this issue."

"Fine you win…"

"That's what I thought, so what do you have to pay with?"

"This…" Sae lifted his arm as to look like he was holding something, but there was nothing there. The tender leaned forward to see only to be met with a punch to the face, temporarily knocking him down. Sae immediately made a run for the exit. Not much later was the tender up screaming for the guards to seize him.

As he came running right outside Klitch was leaning on the door, "Going somewhere?"

"Out." Sae replied trying to ignore him, looking around for the guards.

"You'll never get those gates open."

"I can try."

"Or." Klitch smiled and opened his eyes as Sae remained on watch for a time to go, "You can go through the hole I managed to blast through the wall last night. You probably didn't hear it, sleeping like a baby and all. They didn't even suspect me of it, thought a meteor hit it or something. I love engineering though so,"

Sae cut Klitch off without any time, "Where's the hole?"

"Hold your pants there buddy. First, you have to help me out."

"I'll help you out if I get out of here."

"Then we have a deal?"

"I wouldn't break a promise."

"But you didn't promise." He frowned and then shrugged.

"Damn it! I promise. Just show me the hole!"

"Well, then let's get going. Watch out though. I've seen some travelers get speared. It's not pretty." He smirked and began running. Sae mumbled some words under his breath and began to follow him.

"There!" A voice yelled, "There he is, and he has an accomplice!"

"Geez, what did you do to the poor guy?"

"All I did is punch him once in the face. It's not like I murdered him and they think I'm a major criminal."

"And they think I'm an accomplice."

"Well you know…"

"Shut up. Let's just get out of this village."

Both kept running, guards trailing just behind them. Sae couldn't tell just how many there were behind him because he never dared to turn his head, afraid he might run into somebody in front of him or lose track of Klitch. Another thing that Sae was wondering was why the hole was on the other side of the village. It didn't seem to make sense, but either did Klitch, in any way.

A spear lunged over Sae's shoulder, arching to the ground. He kicked it, causing the hilt to snap as he ran past so he could render the spear useless. It was probably a warning shot, they couldn't really think to kill him over punching the tender, but then again that wasn't all he'd done. He remembered he had a nice bill to pay, a couple thousand. The guards would capture Sae by any means, maybe not if the bill wasn't so much. They might not even bother with him then.

"Look! Just up ahead!"

The hole was something that was actually massive. Sae expected something a little bit smaller. Something that maybe only a body could get through or a little more, not something that 15 men could run through with some space between them. People were stupid if they believed a meteor caused that, or maybe that was just the government's word until they caught the perpetrator.

Klitch ran to the left and Sae to the right. Being a little further ahead, Klitch was the first to make a dive behind the wall, immediately taking cover to the side, waiting for Sae to come past. Sae was about a meter behind, making his jump a little after, narrowly dodging the last attempt throwing of spears. Three missed, all lining up together perfectly above one another.

Sae breathed heavily as he looked at Klitch. Klitch looked at Sae with his hand over his stomach, "I told you I'd get you out." He had little interruptions of coughing from the running.

"And you did." Sae had to breath, "But I hope we're not running more, they don't seem to stop."

"Just a little." Klitch smirked, "I parked a van a little ways up, the road connecting this area to the urban world is up that way."

"There's a road that connects them?"

"Yeah, but it's ok. A lot of locations aren't mapped so outsiders would have trouble." Klitch laughed, "You're not worried they'll find Cidjad are you? Or…"

"Hurry up, they're just past the wall!" A voice yelled on the other side.

"Let's get going." Klitch said pushing himself up and running forward more. Sae waited before following. He watched as Klitch ran forward some meters, then made a sharp turn right past an area of trees. As the trampling steps grew louder he started to make a run.

"There he is! Don't let him escape!"

Sae followed Klitch's exact route. Past those blocking trees was a cleared dirt path that went onto a concrete road. On that road was a van with the back door open and inside was Klitch looking back, waiting for Sae to hop in. Sae began to spring faster. Just as he came in ranged he leaped like a frog into the back.

"Give me that spear." One of the guards said, yanking out another, and then throwing with a perfect spiral. The doors blocked it as Sae closed them just on time. The remaining guards who still had spears began throwing theirs too, but the van acted as armor and deflected them. Klitch began laughing hysterically, "It's so funny!"

"Yeah, I guess it was." For once, he began to laugh with Klitch.

"But hey, I don't think I ever caught your name."

"It's Sae."


	3. 3

The hedgehog took advantage of space the van offered in the back. He stretched his legs and lied down, folding his arms around his head. It would appear he was sleeping with his eyes in a calm close, but it was more of a rest.

"So Sae, what experience do you have with killing?" Klitch asked looking back through the rearview mirror.

Sae looked back at him, his face almost jolting for eye contact through the glass reflection. His eyes suddenly changed from tranquil to serious.

When Sae was 15 he experienced possibly the greatest changes in his life. If you had asked anyone about when he was 15 they would have all told you the same thing: Sae was as carefree about problems as could be and always willing to help those who needed it. However, it always troubled him with the things he heard about his father, one thing he could never cut off his mind.

His father was one of the village's five Hyperiors, a rank of extremist guards who dedicated every action and breath to the safety and betterment of the village. The Hyperiors were well respected by all of the citizens of Cidjad because of this dedication. Sae's own father being one of the Hyperiors was a great honor to him, and to hear the name be disgraced with a suggestion such as death did not float well with him.

Around 10 years preceding that moment, there had been a battle just off into the forest of the Mystic Ruins Forest District. Cidjad guards were called to the battle, but the priority was marked highest so along with the guards were the Hyperior Clan. It was made classified of who the attackers were and what was found after the battle. Sae's father, Mencius, did not return however. He was marked M.I.A for the time being, and later K.I.A as the years went by and no word was confirmed of him, even when no body was found.

There was a replacement for a Hyperior needed almost immediately, so a test was put forth. The replacement was made with a selection by the elder and a review of all the participant's scores. The choice was one that couldn't be held out as it may show a sign of weakness within Cidjad's fortress, nonetheless was the choice a well made one. This being done, Sae would be trained as Cidjad Intel assistance, for infiltration and reconnaissance, an aid of the Hyperiors and a guaranteed candidate for Hyperior selection if one fell.

Starting at the age of 8, Sae was to live within the confines of the Cidjad Military Quarters (CMQ.) He'd follow the militaries schedule of studying and training as they had planned and ask no questions. That's how they would have liked it at least. Likewise, Sae decided it was not of his interest to work. He learned the material well, but did not execute it, he joked with it. It took him two years more then his peers to graduate the school and become an aid of the Hyperiors. So he was initially 13 when he graduated.

Living within the CMQ, Sae had grown used to hearing things about his father. His name was well respected, but his life felt in some form of lie when people said he died. Sae never knew Mencius for a long time, but he knew that his father wouldn't have been the only one to die. He believed that if no body was found, there was a chance he was alive. That's why when he was 15 he decided to leave, but the village's security wasn't the type to just let people out. They needed a pass, otherwise they could be charged with treason and endangering the village's position.

Sae wouldn't risk his life so that he might be caught and imprisoned; especially with the training he had received. It'd almost seem like a mockery of the whole system, not that he hadn't already made such a thing out of his own being. He knew someone that might be able to get him out of the village, but when he came to him he discovered more then he knew.

His old friend who went by the name Grim (It wasn't his real name.) He was an older hedgehog, by a few years, maybe seven. Sae never really actually caught his age, he was just one of the people he happened to become friends with. They're meeting was completely random and had nothing to do with either of their work tasks. They just became good friends.

"Grim!" Sae yelled, his breath running wild as he went into the slum that his friend called a home, "Are you around Grim?"

"Yeah, over here kid." Grim replied from a corner, his face looking a little shaggy and the smell of alcohol coming off of his breath. He was a green hedgehog with poor clothing and a sad face, but he tried to hide it from Sae most of the time, "What's wrong kid?"

"I had a question, I thought you might be able to help me."

"I don't know kid, I can't even help myself right now." Grim looked down.

"What do you mean? You've always been able to pull through."

"You see… come here kid." Sae came closer, that awful mixture of alcohol and smoke coming from every breath Grim had, "I've run into some troubles, worse then I've had. Sometimes I get greedy." Sae nodded and listened, "I've been gambling, trying to pull myself out of this here hole, but nothing works. I got further in and I don't have the money to pay my way out, so I have some people angry with me."

"Who is it Grim?" Sae asked, "Who wants to hurt you?"

"It doesn't matter. What is it you want?"

"I need a forged pass to get out of here. I want to find my father."

Grim sighed and then patted Sae on the head, "I don't think I can do that. Besides you're a good kid. Just let it go. I know he's family, but let it go."

Sae took the words, but he couldn't just give up. There had to be a way around the situation, another way out of the village. If not that, he had to find a way to get Grim to forge him a pass. Being confined to the village it'd be impossible to learn information on his father. It was just too hard for him to accept that his father had died, disappeared, or even abandoned the village. After all, his father Mencius was a Hyperior, said to be dedicated to the village and a great fighter. The thinking others had was just too illogical.

A few nights later the opportune moment came. The sound of feet, stomping the ground like a stampede. A panting breath right outside Sae's quarters. Then there was a halt by some bodies. The hedgehog couldn't see while lying down, but he could here them as they all stopped at once. Then there were voices. The voices that tried to conspire to catch the other person running.

"…He owes a great deal of money to Vivex." Sae didn't like making assumptions, but this was one he couldn't ignore. If there was any chance they were after Grim, he had to do something. The name Vivex seemed familiar. He thought maybe that was one of the crime lords the authorities couldn't catch.

The hedgehog jumped from his bed and slipped on his white jacket, then ran out the door, quickly stopping before he reached the open paths. He leaned his body against the side of the building's entrance wall and waited. Some meters to his left, sprayed with moonlight he saw a figure, panting with hands at the knees. With another closer look, he saw it was Grim, as he thought. From the allies on both of Grim's sides came two figures. They started to jump him, first throwing him to the ground and then beating while he lied defenseless. Sae was not the type to run stupidly into battle though. He was trained to think things through before a situation worsened. So he jumped, and pulled himself up from one of the building's gutters. He was then on the rooftops.

He started to run, as fast as he could while keeping silent until he was on a roof just above the mugging. Blood seemed to fountain from open wounds on Grim as they endlessly beat him, cursing as they did so. "Where are the police?" Sae wondered, almost believing they didn't exist. Maybe Vivex paid them off though. That was always a possibility, even if they never seemed corrupt. Sae couldn't let this continue, so again he jumped.

The teenager landed on the back of one of the attackers, wrapping his feet around the thug's torso and his arms around his neck. With one hit he managed to knock him out. He jumped off and looked at the other three who continued to stare at him.

"Well, well, well. Look what we 'ave 'ere guys. A tough guy who thinks he can play hero." He was obviously the leader. The voice was the same one he heard before, and his arrogance was beyond explanation.

"He's just a kid." Laughed one deeply, "Let's let him go if he wants. Or he can stay and die."

Sae stared at them ready. It was his first actual combat experience, his legs were shaking at their confidence, but he remained firm. His eyes narrowed as the three walked closer, each pulling out small knives, each looking like they'd seen some combat. The leader grinned as he approached. One of the others leaped forward and made a quick slash, attempting to go for a straight kill right away, missing from Sae's agile dodge. The thug was met with a quick reaction of the hedgehog's foot to his throat with just enough force to knock him out.

"We offered you a chance to live. You've damn gone and blown it." The leader stroke forward with his knife next, another one aiming for a quick kill. His attack was responded to with another quick agile dodge and then his body being thrown to the side, causing him to fall to the dirt ground. Sae quickly turned around and kicked the last thug in the face, knocking him to the ground and unconscious. Before the leader could get up, Sae was already with his knees digging into him ready to interrogate him.

"Where's Vivex!?" He asked impatiently.

"Who wants to know?"

"You threatened my friend's life. I want to know."

"You're just a kid, 'e'll tear ya apart."

"Then that's good for you. Tell me where he is."

"Just find his manor, it shouldn't be too hard. Like there's another place like his in this slum they call a village." The leader kept grinning, "Wait a second… you're that Hyperior's son. That failure's son." He began to laugh, "Ha ha… The man's dead kid, and even if he ain't he left. I would 'ave. This place is hell, nothing to do but the same old shit everyday." Sae ended his mouth with a quick chop to the neck, knocking him out.

Sae got up and dusted himself off then. Immediately he ran over to Grim. His friend looked a mess, blood from the nose, blood from his mouth, then there were cuts on his body and bruises everywhere, "Man you're a mess." Say said to his unconscious pal. He began walking him to his home, slowly, but he had another destination in mind. Vivex's manor. Sae was fired.


	4. 4

The moon… it glimmered high, just behind the tallest building in the village. It would not shine its glory on the other houses in Cidjad. It could not with the manor that stood as a wall in its way. Instead a giant shadow was cast all around the village, as the castle-like structure demanded its presence be known.

Sae stood under an open breezeway from outside his friend's home. He looked over at the manor and began to think of the monstrosity differently. Before he'd always thought it was a governmental office or something like that. He was told that anyway, and it made sense to him as he saw several officials, military officers and politicians of the village enter the foundation. Now the corruption within his village made sense, the Vivex Gang had obviously been the support pillar of this corruption. It didn't matter; they were going to pay anyway for what they did to Grim.

Sae could care less about the law at the moment; he was too busy being driven by his emotion to think in any notion of rationality. He looked back to face Grim, who was lying down on a mat, piled with golden straw. Sae smiled at him for a moment, seeing his friend doing better then before. He turned away and spoke, though Grim could not hear the words, "It's not right… and that's why I have to do this…" With that he was out, heading off toward Vivex Manor.

Half an hour passed, and Sae had finally made it to the gates of the beloved gangster's manor. Tall bars of steel, taller then him, warned the hedgehog to go back. Sae could not however; he had already come too far. He leaped from the ground and about half way up kicked the brick on the left end of the gates as to push him further up and give force to enough air to make it over the gates. No alarms. Sae found it a bit suspicious, an area like this without the most secure technology the village could offer. He continued onward anyway. Hanging in the shade a vine almost remained hidden, just enough light shining on it for Sae to catch glimpse of as an entrance to the top of the manor, where he figured Vivex would be hiding. Sae begin to grab the vine, climbing until he reached the end of the vine's gratitude; leaving him to have to infiltrate the rest of the building before continuing on. Before he went in though, Sae stared at his much-loved village and smiled, then disappearing into the manor.

It was less lit then he would have thought inside, dim from corner to corner of the hallway he gave infiltration to. The temperature seemed to match perfectly that of the exterior's cool nightly tropic feel. Sae was much impressed by the luxury Vivex had been given, or rather "earned." He remembered Grim stiffly however and began to walk, left down the hallway, just before voices emerged.

"Did you here what happened Ramos and his group?" A raspy voice asked.

"No, tell me. Did they get that old drunk and beat his ass?" Another clearer voice said. The voices didn't seem to be getting closer anymore, as their dynamics in loudness contrasted with that idea; they had stopped but continued to speak.

"Not at all. Apparently him and his men were found all knocked unconscious and disarmed. That beggar was nowhere in sight but the ground was stained with blood." The raspy voice replied back, "Don't worry though. Vivex already paid off the police and they've issued an order for everyone off the streets because of some thugs."

The other thug laughed, "Good job with Vivex. He always knows how to deal with things. He'll rip Ramos and the others a new one when they get back. That Grim owes a lot of money."

Sae turned the corner in front of both of their eyes, yet the two didn't seemed anywhere near as surprised as they should have been. No irrational actions or name calling erupting from either, almost as if they expected him. Sae spoke though, this time he wasn't shaking in the presence of thugs, "Grim doesn't owe anything to Vivex or anyone else!"

"We were warned there'd be a bug somewhere around." That was the hedgehog with the raspy voice. He was dressed in ripped jeans that seemed to have been ripped from wear and tear, not just as style. Above he was dressed in a leather vest with both sleeves cut off, and a headband that went over one of his eyes while lifting his messy hair due, "Never expected someone so young to be so bold though."

"Yo, I think I've seen him hang around that low-life Grim before." The other hedgehog was cleanly dressed in a black dress shirt and jeans. He wore sunglasses just below his eyes, and the first thing Sae noticed on him was a weapon. An iron bar about the length of the thug's forearm.

"Two in one deal then." The first thug slipped on some brass knuckles and then lunged forward to hit Sae.

Sae narrowly dodged, seeing the fist come right between his face and almost a centimeter of air. _He's fast!_ Sae thought, knowing that these two weren't the low rank thugs. He flipped back, using the motion as an evasive technique to give him room between himself and the thugs, as well as to land an exceptional counter on the first thug's jaw.

"Damn you!" Just his reaction showed the thug's embarrassment of being hit, how he wanted to take a blade to Sae and slowly peel him like a potato, "I'll skin you alive for that!"

The second thug came in now, swinging with intense speed the metal rod, cracking right into Sae's left arm before he could react. Again he came in swinging, this time Sae ducked, avoiding the shot and leaving the rod to smash into the wall to his right instead, a massive hole the aftermath. From his kneeled position, Sae thrust forward his right elbow into the thug's stomach, causing him to gasp in desire of air. He soon fell to the ground, and as his body collapsed his partner began to make his next attack from behind. Sae had no time to react, he didn't even see this next attack. He was met with a brass fist to his face before he even knew what was happening. Sae stumbled backward and then his vision began to blur. Everything became black, and he was out…

"So you're the mouse that's been sneaking around my manor." The voice held ego in its words. Sae's eyes slowly opened as a blur, his head hurting from that last punch. He stared dirtily at the assumed Vivex, a brown hedgehog dressed with black pants and a white formal undershirt, the sleeves rolled up as if he was about to commit some serious business to Sae, there was nothing he could do though tied tightly in the chair as he was, "Are you the one who interfered with Ramos? Maybe I'll have you jailed… No… I want to have some fun with you first, and I'm sure Linux and Trip want their fun for having to deal with you as well."

Linux… He was the one with brass knuckles and raspy voice. Now that there was no adrenaline guiding his sense, Sae could clearly smell the smoke emanating from his clothes. Then Trip… Trip had given him a good hit in the left shoulder just before Linux knocked him out. Sae was beginning to regain memory of what he was doing here, "They were going to kill Grim weren't they?"

"What's it to ya?" Vivex asked, that same ego coming from his tongue.

"You're no better then the rest of your thugs. Their leader? Sure. But when you break it down you're all just the same person."

"Big words for a kid sitting in chair." Vivex licked his tongue, then taking a nice punch to Sae's face. The hedgehog spit on Vivex's pure white shirt in response, blood coming up in the saliva.

"Big words for a dead man." Sae replied back.

"You? Threatening me in your position? Not a good idea. Linux, Trip… Deal with him as you please." Vivex began walking away, but stopped before tossing Linux a switchblade, "Make it good. He'll do as a replacement for Grim."

"Gotcha boss." Linux said, switching the blade out and walking closer to Sae. He began to chuckle, his blue eyes narrowing and sinister thoughts entering his mind, "I'm going to enjoy this." Linux moved the blade close to Sae's throat, "How does it feel? Knowing this may be your last night alive? Knowing you may see that moon just this last time." Linux adjusted Sae's head as to look out the window toward the full moon, not a cloud in sight.

_What can I do? I promised Grim that I would save him… Technically I have and everything… Now I just have to save myself… Damn it!_ Before he even thought a moment more, Sae moved his neck down, opening his mouth and biting as hard as he could into Linux's hand. In reaction, Linux's hand flew back with a loosened grip of the knife letting it fall out and fly behind him.

"He broke the skin! He broke the frick'n skin that bastard!" Linux screamed, more shocked then anything. Sae took the opportunity and with as much force as he could conjure knocked himself forward, pushing himself into the air and causing Linux to fall over. The front left leg left of the chair left Sae with quick opportunity, as he lifted it just above Linux's throat, changing the tides of hostility.

"Untie me or I'll smash his throat with the leg of this chair. Don't pick up the knife either." Sae said, something in his tone neglecting a bluff. _It's my life or his. I would never murder without reason… I would never murder…_

Trip stood their dumbfounded; wondering how they had switched positions in this hostage predicament, "Quit standing there! And do what he says!" Linux managed to sequel out. Trip walked toward the tied hedgehog and quickly loosened his ropes. Sae's first move was an elbow to the thug's face. The unsuspecting force knocked Trip out on contact. Sae removed the chair from Linux's throat and then kneeled to the ground, hitting his neck to knock Linux out, "I should do more for the trouble you threatened me with, but I've got a bigger fish to catch."

Sae left the same way Vivex had, picking up the knife on his way out. He was led to one more hallway, but the next direction was obvious. To his right, Sae had the option of going down some more stairs, and right in front of him was a jeweled red door. It seemed obvious where Vivex would be. When the hedgehog knocked the doors open, Vivex was already standing there facing him with a steel long sword pointed in the hedgehog's direction.

"Stand back!" Vivex yelled, fear derived from the hedgehog's mere ability to stand before him, "Monster!"

"I'm not the monster!" A strong sense of justice began to plague Sae's thoughts, "You… Vivex. You rigged those games Grim gambled in, didn't you? You knew he'd lose. You're the monster."

"I did no such thing! That man was just a fool!" Sae tool the knife from the inside pocket of his white coat, then releasing it into the air to freedom. The knife reached its destination, stabbing roughly into Vivex's hand and causing him to drop his weapon.

"I will free Grim from your binding and destroy this foundation that has corrupted Cidjad!"

"You think anyone in this damned village believes things the way you do!?" Vivex started breathing heavily, blood dripping quickly from his wound, "You're one in a million kid."

………

"So I killed the bastard… And Grim thanked me… In the end he did forge me that pass and I escaped Cidjad to find what happened to my father. Of course it probably wasn't long until they discovered I had left, but I was long gone by then." Sae explained to Klitch.

Klitch laughed in joy at the ending of the story, "That's what I like to hear! A good ending!"

"So what's this proposition of yours?"

Klitch smirked, "Don't worry, I'll get to it." He then looked back into his rear view mirror, past Sae. Two figures began riding up on Klitch's van fast. They had to be going at least 60mph at this instance, "Damn, those guards are persistent! I'll try to lose them."

"Guards?" Sae looked back and his eyes widened, "Not guards Klitch… Hyperiors."


	5. 5

"Hyperiors!?" There was a sudden spike in the fox's tone as he became mockingly weary in thought, "How did those badasses find us?" Klitch remained sarcastic and playful as usual even in this situation.

"They sent an informer to Cidjad to get some friends to tango." Sae looked back at Klitch for an instant, a bit annoyed by his "friend's" lack of seriousness right now. He continued to think, knowing that this hunk of junk called a van wouldn't be able to out do these guards.

"So what do you intend I do?" Klitch kept a steady eye on the road, keeping the van on a straight path on the tar road as it ventured down a slope into the shaded coverage of even more forest. The speedometer on the van continued to increase as well with Klitch's foot fully flat on the accelerator, the van now going at its peak of 85mph, "This is as fast as we're going.

Sae thought for a bit. He'd never thought he'd have this moment to encounter, he'd been so careful with not giving his position away to Cidjad before so he never had to. Now he'd finally have to encounter what he'd been trying to avoid; the two Hyperiors surrounded the vehicle on both sides now, keeping perfect pace with the vehicle. For the first time Klitch saw what they looked like, both elites wearing black jump suits with black overcoats outlined in white. The Hyperiors stared through the windows at the driver, Klitch turning to make eye contact with the one on his left and then playfully saluting. The Hyperior's face remained solemn even through Klitch's mockery.

"Drive off the road!" The hedgehog demanded. He wouldn't face the penalties of Cidjad, he'd come to far.

"What?" Klitch became a little concerned with Sae's mental state, but after looking at either side of him he realized that capture was nonnegotiable with these extremists, "Alright Sae. Off-roading it is." Klitch smiled and pressed on the breaks, the Hyperiors continuing to run on ahead before they could stop themselves. Klitch turned the wheel of his van and began the quick turn right off the road as he began to accelerate his van again. Suddenly the feeling within the vehicle changed from smooth to bumpy, and Sae being in the back was left being tossed around like a rag doll, "No sign of those Hyperiors anymore." Klitch could now keep his focus more intently on keeping the van stable.

Sae was in just regaining his balance now, his mind still focused on the two Hyperiors who he knew were out there, waiting for their chance to strike. Sae had been trained for Intel Assistance; he knew the stealth involved with that must be something that was incorporated into the Hyperiors as well, except a more advanced study of the tactics and its usage. If anything the Hyperiors would try multiple methods of stopping the van before resorting to the assassination of Klitch.

The terrain began to shift right before the van. Suddenly it became more steep and started sloping, fallen trees lay on the ground in front of the van and it was almost as if Klitch had driven into uncharted territory. Suspicions began growing from Sae about the area, "Be careful Klitch." He warned.

"Still afraid of them Hyperiors?" He retorted jokingly. Klitch believed that they'd just given up and left, "I told ya, we los-" Klitch was cut off as a tree fell a few meters in from of them. There was no time to break, and the van flipped over the fallen tree. Before the van began its tumble down the hill Sae caught a glimpse of both Hyperiors, standing where the tree once stood and staring at the rolling van.

For two minutes, the van tumbled, rolling continuously at a constant speed. Sae was tossed from wall to wall of the back as the vehicle made its roll. The van crashed into several trees on its way down, completely cracking the windshields and one branch of a tree even breaking through the passenger window just before it acted as a barrier to block the van from rolling anywhere else. The van was completely flipped and totaled by the time it had stopped, rendered useless for going anywhere else. Sae also had blacked out from all the banging with his head against the side of the van.

When Sae woke he felt an arm holding him down, the sun was no longer up either. Sae was immensely confused, not knowing what had happened and the last thing that he could conjure in memory being on the highway and seeing two Hyperiors following them. He began to adjust himself to what little comfort he could get, not speaking before he heard Klitch's voice.

"You're awake?" Klitch would have shown some sign of grace here hadn't the stars polluted the sky before him and night's own darkness plagued their eyes.

"What happened?" Sae asked, major aches soaring throughout his entire body.

"You got roughed up by the tumble down here. You should actually be happy you didn't choose the first class experience, aka the passenger seat. That is, unless you wanted to be impaled by a branch."

"First class?" Sae laughed, stopping just to hold back some coughs trying to force their way up, "That's ok, my ride was just as eventful back there. No need for the extra luxury." Suddenly it struck him to ask though, "Where are we and what about the Hyperiors?"

"After the crash, you were pretty banged up. I dragged you out and got us away from the wreck and into these bushes for cover. I've been waiting for you to come to for hours, not sure where them Hyperiors are though." Klitch moved his arm above his forehead.

"I see… You need to get that bandaged up." Sae noted, he was talking about Klitch trying to block the cut on his head. He couldn't disguise it though, there was actually a small pool where Sae's arm lay when he awoke, "Doesn't seem too bad though."

"Yeah… I'll treat it whenever we get to my cabin. It's where I was trying to get us before that lil interruption." Klitch closed his eyes now, yawning silently in case the two Hyperiors lurked by, he had no idea what they were capable of. He began to whisper again; "We'll lay low for the night and move when the sun's up. Sound good?"

"Yeah. They probably have higher priorities. I'm thinking they'll be gone by sunrise."

The duo slept uncomfortably through the night, always on guard and just waiting to be apprehended. They got lucky that day though; to escape the confines of even one Hyperior was an achievement. Two was considered luck. The sun graced the morning as Sae and Klitch awoke at relatively the same instance. A few meters forward and to the left both caught glimpse of the totaled van standing up.

"Damn, and I had that thing forever." Klitch face-palmed himself, half not being able to believe what had happened, "Listen," He stared at Sae who looked back at him with open ears, "we're almost to my cabin. I'm guessing if we head a bit east we'll be there in a matter of minutes."

"How do you know?" Sae asked, a little unconvinced at this moment.

"See that tall rock pillar over there, almost like a mountain?" Klitch pointed to a gray towering structure that created one extra shadow unnecessary for the forest's identity. It was kind of hard to miss and almost looked like a pillar, "That's like a landmark and I know which direction my cabin is just based off that one point. I didn't just wait for the sun to avoid the Hyperiors. I needed a sense of direction!" Klitch flicked his nose and grinned.

"Damn… You're one smart bastard." Sae complimented smiling faintly, his eyes closed and face tilted to the ground, "When we get there you better explain to me what you want and how you intend to help me."

"Don't worry, I do Sae." Klitch replied, this time a tone of seriousness hinting in his voice, "Let's get going."


	6. 6

It had been two hours since the morning had graced its light. Klitch and Sae finally arrived at Klitch's cabin. The whole are was secluded at the top of a hill by many trees that forbid any sky view or distant view of the location. Looking through this coverage, Sae was surprised to see a beautiful view of the Mystic Ruins. He could see out to a nearby waterfall, the light reflecting handsomely off the pond below. Beyond that he could see the top of the forest, something he couldn't even begin to imagine. Lush green in every part of the forest, with the occasional view of a path.

Sae followed Klitch up to the entrance of the cabin, Klitch then turning with a bright smile on his face knowing he'd done his job, "So what do you think?" Klitch was speaking of the view, "Pretty nice huh."

"It's funny," Sae laughed silently, "I never thought of you as the sentimental type."

"Everybody enjoys a good view. It's a universal truth." Klitch explained, "Come on. Let's head inside."

Klitch led Sae inside to a most welcoming home. A red carpet lay dormant in front of a fireplace and off to the left, next to a large window looking out a an empty patch of dirt, was a table. Sae guessed the patch of dirt probably acted as a parking space for his rebellious friend's old van. What caught Sae's eye the most however was a peculiar looking box that seemed to hum. Never had he seen something like it. It was a large silver rectangle with a wooden handle, something he'd never seen in his entire life in Cidjad or wandering the Mystic Ruins forests. The hedgehog walked up to the strange box, putting his hand off. It emitted a cold feel and immediately he whipped his hand back.

"It's called a refrigerator." Klitch said, almost impressed by Sae's ignorance, "You put food in it and it keeps it from spoiling."

"It's just strange." Sae replied, still astounded by the technology.

"I'll probably have to head to Coral City to recharge the damn thing in a month. Don't get any constant charge of electricity out here."

Though Sae had been exposed to electricity countless times the things it could do with technology never ceased to surprise him. He wondered if Vivex's mansion had had a refrigerator in it. After all, it was one of the most supported structures back in Cidjad.

"So anyway, what's this proposition of yours Klitch?" Sae asked, suddenly becoming an 'all business' type of guy.

"Right. Let's sit down and discuss this." Both Klitch and Sae pulled out some chairs and sat facing each other at the table, "It's revenge, something you've had a slight taste of." Klitch smirked upon bringing this up; Sae ignored this apparent rudeness and continued to listen, "There's a bandit that goes by the name of Durango. I want him dead."

"And how do you intend I go about doing that?"

"Lucky for you, I've spent the last couple years of my life setting this up. I've done as much research as I can on the outside on these bandits." Klitch turned around and grabbed a folder from a drawer behind him. He opened it revealing a detailed profile on the target: Durango.

"This is quite a record on this guy." Sae noted, "It looks like he'd be impossible to find or come in direct contact with."

"Well, that's why it's going to be a lot harder then just finding him. For his own sake, his men move him around often. He'll only meet with you if you become respected well enough within their group."

"In other words I'll have to become a bandit to kill a bandit?" Sae looked down, taking the offer more serious then before, "Klitch, I thank you for saving my life but…" He paused. Sae didn't know what to do. He knew that if he followed through with this he would have to go along with everything, possibly hurting people he never intended to.

"Sae. I know you more now, and I like you. I really do. You're just a likable guy." Klitch was working with words the way he did again, always able to think the right words up, impossible to tell if there was a hint of sarcasm or not, "If you don't want to do it, there's the door." He pointed to cabin entrance, "But you'll never be any closer to finding your daddy and I'll never be any closer to killing this bastard. Maybe if you understood what this guy did."

"No… You're right. Besides, I already promised you." Sae replied with a fake smile, "How am I going to infiltrate a group of bandits though? You don't really expect me to just walk up to their camp and ask if I can join, right?"

"No, not at all. I expect you to ask them if you can please join." Klitch laughed, "Seriously Sae, I've had this thought out for a long time. Have faith buddy!" Again he laughed, but it was louder and with more enthusiasm then the last, "I know of a few people that if I just ring them up I'm sure they'll be able to get us some goods."

"Goods?" Sae asked, "Exactly what?"

"It doesn't matter, drugs, ammunition, the latest weaponry. That's all these guys want. That's how they've become so powerful around here, not by my hand though. Don't be thinkin' the wrong way."

Sae had seen guns before and now he knew how they were getting into this primitive culture, through import. He knew how dangerous they were to the villages.

"I'm thinkin' that if I get you some ammunition, maybe tag off some other goods and you wheel 'em in on a wagon that we can stage a pretty good story. Just tell them that you ambushed a caravan and you were looking to sell their goods. If you're lucky, they won't kill you first and just take everything for themselves, hell they might even ask you to help them out on their next mission!" Klitch smacked the table as he continued to play with Sae's fate and chuckle hysterically. Sae stared and wondered how he thought this was, in any way, funny.

"So this whole plan is based on a little fact and a whole lot of guessing Klitch!?" Sae's voice spiked with anger, he was ready to take up Klitch's offer on leaving.

"Now calm down there. I was just joking. I know of ten bandits that joined in that same exact way, given that their stories were true. Only one person has ever died, and that's because they tried to hassle the price on the goods a little bit too much."

"Right. I'll take faith in your plan then."

Klitch was much obliged by Sae's acceptance. Finally the two were getting somewhere. If Sae actually could infiltrate these bandits he figured the rest would be easy. He'd dealt with these types of people before, but not from the inside. He knew the way they acted and how they plotted – one reason he was able to place faith in Klitch's plan.

"Alright, I'll give my guys in Coral a call then and it'll be set up within a week. We'll setup your ambush on the 'caravan' about 3 miles south of the bandit camp to the West. That shouldn't be too far to haul the goods on a wagon. Right?" Klitch asked.

"I've got that part taken care of. Just don't order too much." Said Sae.

"Alright, in the meantime why don't you just check out what's on the news for both our sakes. I'll call up my friends now." Klitch pressed a button on black rectangular device. A screen flashed on another metallic rectangular box, suddenly there were pictures displaying, "It's called a television, don't be alarmed. It's not going to blow up." The television was already on the news channel displaying a headline at the bottom 'Gangs still influencing Coral City.' Klitch smirked, "Good. They're still a main influence. We shouldn't have any trouble then. You just enjoy yourself." Klitch then took out from his pocket a small object. He unfolded it and pressed some digits, ringing coming from the small object speakers. Suddenly voices began, Klitch began speaking in code. Sae assumed he was somehow intertwined with this gang business.

Sae would have actually never have guessed Klitch to have been from a gang, or associated with them. He didn't judge though and nor did he really care. If Sae was going to help Klitch he knew he'd have to eliminate any bias. Besides, he understood that the fox had his own reasons for doing things and his own past. Sae wasn't prepared to ask about either of them. He trusted Klitch to having a good reason. After this was all over though, he did make it his intention to ask and get an answer.

"Alright." Klitch said, his traditional simper coming across his face, "It's done. In one week we'll move out to the decided location." He flipped his phone closed and slipped it back into his pants pocket, "There's no backing down now."

"I understand." Sae said, giving a thumbs up as reassurance to both himself and Klitch that he knew.


	7. 7

The week had past and that morning Klitch had received a call on his phone informing him that everything had been set up. The fox seemed rather excited for this news as he told Sae that they were moving out to the location. Sae was still confused, placing his morals before everything, wondering how he'd come to where he was. He knew that morning though, that if he didn't go along with this infiltration he may eventually regret it, forever.

The two arrived in a bare spot, as few as four trees around in a ten-meter radius. In the middle of the dirt tract stood a very rugged looking being. It was a type of creature Sae had never seen before, but by the looks of it he assumed it was a human. The man seemed to tower over Sae, at least twice his own height putting him somewhere above six feet tall. He wore a white wife beater and a black beanie with ripped baggy jeans. His hair was just down to his shoulder; Sae could immediately see his and Klitch's connections.

"What's up big guy!?" Klitch said smiling, walking up and offering the man a hand.

The towering figure took to hand and responded, "Nothin' much man. Just helping a bro out." His voice was deep and commanding. Sae didn't expect him to be the actual leader of Klitch's formal gang though.

"That hedgehog back there, he's the one I've been tellin' you about. He's going to be doing the real dirty work." Klitch snickered.

"Aight man. Peace out and take care. I've got to get back to the city. Later." The man's very dialect was dirty and sounded very uneducated, Sae wasn't impressed by him at all. In fact, he began thinking to himself arrogantly at the moment, being skittish from the man's presence. _If he tried anything I could have taken him._ He thought, eying him as he walked away.

"That was Patrick, he's a bouncer so they usually send him for transactions. He's pretty big if you didn't notice." Klitch noted, as if Sae care. He continued to inspect the goods to make sure there wasn't anything wrong, he even began moving them around from their organization to make things look dirtier and like confrontation had occurred, "There," Klitch said, "Everything looks good. You should probably head out now Sae." Sae nodded and began to walk the opposite direction down the path, pulling the wagon by its end. This would be Sae and Klitch's last confrontation for a long while. Sae raised his hand as to say goodbye to his fox advocate. He was then gone into the distance and out of Klitch's site – Klitch out of his.

It was an hour before Sae arrived to the mapped bandit camp. The items in the wagon weighed him down a lot more then he would have suspected. Finally though, the bandit gates were on the horizon. They were large wooden poles, sharpened at their tips and lined up by each other tied by several layers of rope. The only weak spot in the gate was the section where it opened and closed, but even that was protected by towers on either side with guards carrying fully loaded automatics, both at this instance smoking on some cigarettes.

Before Sae could get any closer to the gate he was told to stop. The hedgehog didn't want to take any chances on losing his life so naturally he did so on command. He stood staring, strong as usual, but his confidence was struck with his nerves. These bandits were likely unpredictable and at any moment could turn on him and take everything for themselves, like Klitch had joked about. A small drop of sweat dropped from one brow and onto the cleared dirt below. Sae realized he needed to stay cool, otherwise he'd be in a hell of trouble.

Suddenly, the gates opened. Out walked 5 bandits, a wolf and four foxes, fully armed. They formed a point as they came toward Sae, one in the front, two in the middle, and two on the ends of both sides. All of them except for the point man, the wolf, were fully armed. They carried automatics and tied knives either to their arms or legs. Sae was assuming they were either the cleanup crew or the inspection crew, though his thoughts were more nervously joking on the cleanup crew. They finally stood away about ten meters, the four armed men spreading and aiming at the hedgehog.

The point man walked forward to meet Sae, a scar coming across his eye. He wore a red bandanna and a torn white shirt and some torn jeans. Around the jeans he had a jacket tied. He seemed to be very important just by the cold look in his eyes; it was different from the others. The wolf took his cigarette out of his mouth to speak, "So who in fucking hell are you?" He asked looking at everything, "You think you can just fucking waltz up here to out encampment?" The wolf spit on Sae, but the hedgehog only wiped it off his face. He was at the low end of the deal at the moment. The wolf smiled pleased by the reaction, "Boys!" He called out, "I hope your trigger fingers are itchy because when I say three you're going to fire on this kid's ass!" He laughed, waving his hand in the air, "One… Two…" He waited before three. Sae didn't know what to do, he could land a punch or two in on the wolf before he was fired upon but that was it.

"I'm just shitting you kid." The wolf said, a dirty smile revealing his yellow teeth, "Now what the fuck are you doing here with this shit?"

Sae's mind was dead. He had to think hard of what Klitch told him to tell them, he was so scared. It came back to him just on time though; he could see the wolf's mouth ready to engage on the word **three**. "I came across a caravan and raided their goods." He responded, "I was just looking to…" Sae suddenly realized his personality wasn't the type to fit his story, so he changed it a bit on the spot, "I was just looking to make a little cash." He imitated Klitch's snicker and rubbed his fingers together.

"You alone took out a caravan? Hard to believe, they're usually guarded by some fucking city patrol." The wolf replied.

Sae was nervous still but he had to bullshit the experience, if not he would be done and found out, "That city guard was the damn caravan!" He argued, pointing to the goods. The wolf walked forward to see an arsenal of guns and drugs. He was starting to believe Sae at this point.

"Really? That's quite the fucking feat you accomplished. Looks like you robbed the right patrol, 'cause I think we're gonna have ourselves a fucking party tonight. Haul it in." The wolf ordered, two of the armed men came and grabbed the wagon.

"What about my pay jackass!?" Sae asked furiously. He wasn't really angry, as the money wasn't his goal, but he realized it to be better to act out.

The wolf looked at the hedgehog, a bit surprised by him, "What?" He laughed, "You've got some real balls kid, to say that straight to my face like that. I should have those balls torn off and put in a blender so you can eat those fucking words. Then we'll see how tough you really are. He laughed again, "but instead I'm going to invite you to come party with us kid. You'll get your pay of 200 dollars, at the least, but maybe you'll consider another lifestyle when you see what we have to offer."

Sae faked a smirk as he complied with what the wolf wanted, "Alright. That's even better." The words were cold, but honest this time. He was getting to where he wanted to be now, one step closer to whoever the bandit leader was.

Sae followed the men inside to the encampment. There were several tents set up, as if this whole place were only temporary. He spotted a fire with a bunch of drunken bandits around it, a combination of buff, skinny, rugged animals. It seemed like anyone and everyone was good enough to become bandits; no skills were needed except for being good with the word 'fuck' as it seemed to be thrown out every other sentence. Sae kept that in mind; it wasn't a word he was keen on personally, but it would help him become a more believable bandit.

"So what do you think? We've got it pretty fucking good over here. Not a single job to be done and all the fun you could want." The wolf smirked, obviously trying to entice Sae.

"Pretty fucking good!" Sae echoed, practicing the word on his tongue.

The wolf was taking a liking to Sae now. It was good, as the hedgehog was going to need a higher-up as the wolf to get closer to his target. If Sae were true to his false identity, he'd probably have taken some form of liking to the wolf as well.

The wolf approached the circle and all the drunks stopped to look at their superior and scream, "'Ey!" It was a deafening sound as they never shut up. Sae figured he might be able to get the wolf to shut them up if he just asked, or implied it.

"Do these fucks ever shut up?" He asked.

"They're drunk, what do you think?" The wolf replied, looking at Sae stupidly. "You greasy fucks shut the hell up!" He demanded. There was a silence suddenly, with one or two drunken laughs, "We're really going to party tonight. We may have picked up the most shit ever with this little punk right here!" The wolf said pointing to Sae and wrapping one arm around him, "Why don't you tell everyone your name, not that they'll remember a damn thing after tonight."

"My names Sae." He announced.

"Hear that kiddies? Now go get fucking wasted!" The wolf ordered, he pushed Sae into the circle where drugs and alcohol were being passed along.

_Tonight is going to be one hell of a night._ The hedgehog thought as he began to be forced into the activities.


End file.
